BROWN SWISS 75 



They are also in great demand in Germany, Hungary, and 

 other parts of Europe. Foreign buyers take all the surplus 

 stock offered for sale. The cows bring from $125 to $150 

 to be used as milkers. 



Conditions in Switzerland. The total area of Switzer- 

 land amounts to 15,976 square miles, of which about 71 per 

 cent is said to be productive. The total number of cows is 

 approximately three fourths of a million and from these are 

 produced dairy products sufficient for a population of three 

 and a half million and surplus dairy products exported to a 

 value of around $26,000,000 per year. The Brown Swiss 

 cattle are found from the shores of Lake Constantine at an 

 elevation of 1400 feet above the sea to near the line of per- 

 petual snow in the Alps. During the winter season the 

 cattle are kept in the valleys and stabled closely in rather 

 warm but dark, poorly ventilated barns and in not especially 

 sanitary conditions. During this season they are fed almost 

 entirely upon hay grown in the meadows in the valleys 

 which is handled with the greatest care and is of exceptional 

 quality. In addition they are fed turnips, potatoes, and a 

 small quantity of grain, usually oil cake, but never more 

 than three or four pounds per day. As spring opens they 

 are taken to the edge of the valleys and the lower Alps up 

 to an elevation of about 3000 feet where they are pastured 

 on an average of about 116 days. 1 As the summer advances 

 the herds are moved upwards to the Middle Alps which are at 

 an elevation of from 3000 to 6500 feet, where they are pas- 

 tured on an average of 92 days. In July and August they 

 are taken on to higher pastures which are called the High 

 Alps at an elevation of from 6000 to 8500 feet. As winter 



1 Baechler-Massuger, Journal British Dairy Farmers' Assoc., Vol. 10, p. 47. 



